Friday, June 24, 2016

Edgar Allan Poe has written horrific and
otherworldly stories and poetry. Some are those coming back to haunt the main
character. The question here is, has he been seen in specter form?

I’ve been to the
old Stone House where the Poe Museum in Richmond, Virginia is housed. It is
haunted by children. As for him, maybe where some of his personal affects are.
Near his childhood bed I gotten my EMF meter to go off once. Is it him? Or the
others that haunt the buildings? No clear answer. I’d returned a second time with the Richmond Paranormal Society, but got nothing concerning Poe. Another spot he has been seen in Richmond is what had been the home
of his love and last fiance and there are claims his ghost has been seem in
Shockoe Cemetery.

There is a famous
and unsolved mystery concerning Poe’s gravesite in the Old Western Burial
Ground. The remains of people like Edgar Allan Poe, the son of Francis Scott
Key, the grandfather of President James Buchanan, five former mayors of
Baltimore and fifteen generals from the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812
are buried here. Few years ago, my husband and I drove pass it to
another destination at the time. We never stopped, or gone back to visit
it—someday, I hope to. A story about Poe’s grave involves a man seen in the
graveyard for more than fifty years. Dressed completely in black, including a
black fedora and a black scarf to hide his face, he carries a walking stick and
strolls into the cemetery every year on January 19, the birth date of Edgar
Allan Poe. On every occasion, he has left behind a bottle of cognac and three
red roses on the graveside of the late author. After placing these items with
care, he then stands, tips his hat and walks away. The offerings always remain
on the grave, although one year, they were accompanied by a note, bearing no
signature, which read: "Edgar, I haven’t forgotten you."

Tales claim the
ghost of Edgar Allan Poe haunts his graveside, but the man in black is alive, just no one knows for sure who he is. He has brought roses and cognac to the
cemetery every January since 1949. This past January 2013, he hasn’t. I can
only assume he has passed away and is now a ghost himself if anyone sees him.

Legend has it that the ghost of
Edgar Allan Poe has been seen near his grave and in the catacombs of the
church. At the catacombs, it is said there are cold spots, sounds of footsteps,
disembodied whisperings and some visitors have felt the touch of unseen hands
too. The author died mysteriously in Baltimore and thus came to be buried there
Poe was found barely conscious and lying in a gutter on East Lombard Street in
Baltimore. He was rushed to a hospital but he died a short time later.

Some said Poe's death was caused by
alcohol, others say that he was in a psychotic state and even rabies has been
blamed. Other writers believe that he may have been drugged and murdered as the
clothes that he wore were not his own and the walking stick he carried belonged
to another man. There have been literally dozens of theories posed as to what
caused Poe’s death but no one will ever know for sure. Perhaps the fact that
his death remains unexplained is the reason why Poe’s ghost remains in the Old
Western Burial Ground.Poe’s house in
Baltimore now a museum is haunted. There are cold spots and people have felt
something tapping them on the shoulder. Windows fly open and shut by unseen
hands. Witnesses have reported seeing an overweight grey haired woman dressed
in clothing of the 1800s. People have heard mysterious voices. An actress was
getting dressed for a play based on Berenice, a horror story Poe
wrote. A window suddenly fell and crashed to the floor. It had been secure and
there were no wind gusts.

During the riots
that followed Martin Luther King’s assassination, people saw lights in the
house and called the police who also witnessed the lights that moved from floor
to floor. They could not get into the house and did not want to break into it,
so they surrounded the building and waited for the curator. No one had been in
the house.

His phantom has
been seen at Fort Monroe. Witnesses claim to have seen his ghost writing away
at a desk; he penned some minor poetry collections while on base.

Another possible building for Poe to haunt would be at Hiram Haines Coffee and Ale House in Petersburg, Virginia that his friend owned in 1830s and invited Poe and Virginia Clemm to spend their honeymoon there. I investigated the second floor suite where they stayed, but did not get any EVPs or voices from the ghost box from him nor from his bride. Does he haunt there? I never heard any stories of his spirit there neither. Only a legend of Virginia seen at a window on January 39th. (Reopened and in my nonfiction ghost book, Paranormal Petersburg, and the Tri-Cities Area, it closed before my book was released and for sale.)

Other Spots Poe Is Claimed to Haunt

Washington College
Hospital: this is the Baltimore hospital where he died in 1849, it's been
said that Poe's ghost has been seen roaming its hallways.

Eutaw House: There are a myriad of eerie tales concerning the old
Centre County, Pennsylvania, Inn. One is that Poe stopped by, fell in love with
a local girl, and was spurned. A spook that physically resembles him has been
spotted there, although the local lore seems to associate the apparition with a
ghost family haunting its halls

Friday, June 17, 2016

I will be a vendor at Paracon at the Exchange Hotel Museum tomorrow, from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. The address is 400 S. Main Street, Gordonsville, Virginia 22942. The all-day event cost $10.00. I will be sharing my canopy with fellow author and Paranormal World Seekers paranormal investigator, Carol Smith. We will be selling and signing our books, along with Paranormal World Seekers DVDs. For who will be there speaking and anything else: http://nightattheexchangehotel.com/paracon-2016

Today
for Supernatural Friday, I interviewed the president of my Horror Writers Association
chapter. Enjoy learning about Dee South.

What
was the first time you decided you wanted to be a horror writer?

In
middle school. I was the kid who loved
Hammer movies, Twilight Zone and Night Gallery. I loved reading stories and had already had
a letter to the President published in a local book for students. I think it was called, Young Writers of Detroit.

What
scares you?

Flying
in an airplane. Yuck. Other than that, the thought of being eaten
alive by an animal freaks me out. The
animal doesn’t matter: ants, piranhas,
sharks.

3Are
you working on anything now and can you tell us what?

Yes. I’m working on my debut novel about a rogue
priest who’s a member of a special Vatican sponsored exorcism team. They travel the country investigating evil.

What was the first horror novel or short story you read that
turned you to the genre?

My first horror novel that I remember is Phantoms by Dean Koontz. But there were short stories that stood out
in my childhood like Rawhead Rex (if
I remember correctly) by Clive Barker.

Name
5 good horror/thriller books that you feel others should read.

Most
are from my childhood. Jaws by Benchley, Battlefield Earth by Hubbard (more scifi than horror), It by King, Any 47th Precinct book by McBain and Infernal Angel by Lee (extreme horror). My current favorite is the Dresden Filesby Butcher, but that falls into contemporary
fantasy.

Is
there anything else you like to write?

Mysteries,
Science Fiction and Fantasy. I really
love cross-genre books and movies. Give
me a good mystery inside of a science fiction story and I’m in love. Give me a horror story in a fantasy, same
result.

Tell us why you joined Horror Writers Association? And why
did you take on leading the
Virginia chapter of the organization?

I
joined horror writers because I needed to find folks with my twisted mindset. I got tired of attending critique groups
where people flinch and grimace when it was time to critique my story. Most critiques started with the phrase, “I
don’t generally read this type of story…” I
took the lead on the Virginia Chapter in order to meet other horror writers in
my state. Once I found out about the
chapter program and realized that we didn’t have a chapter, my goal became to
find ‘my people’ and bring us together.

What
benefits do you feel the organization gives to writers?

So,
so much. I’ve only been a member of the
HWA for 2 years and already I’ve met so many horror writers. In addition, I’ve met writers on the national
level such as John Palisano, Brian Keene and Edward Lee. The HWA has a wonderful mentorship program
led by Michael Knost. I’ve had the
benefit of having John Palisano, the author or Ghost Heart and Dust of the
Dead, mentor me for an entire year. Our
chapter have vended local conventions like RavenCon, MarsCon, and Scares That
Care. Events like Monster Fest. Also, members can avail themselves
of the HWA website and find various markets, editors and publishers.

Tell
us your hobbies.

My
hobbies: Reading, writing, and I’ve just
picked up knitting. I love to play volleyball and softball, but my body is starting to rebel at those activities.

10.Are you a big Halloween fan? What is a favorite Halloween
memory?

I’m a
huge Halloween fan. My biggest memory is
that when I was younger, we had a family challenge to make our own Halloween
costume with items in the house. I chose
to be a tree. I cut up some paper and
drew green veins and safety pinned the leaves to my clothes. I was raised in Detroit, so Halloween could
get pretty frigid for us some years.

What
are five of the scariest horror movies you seen?

My
five scariest horror movies: Exorcist,
Amityville Horror, Aliens 1 & 2, Jaws and The Exorcism of Emily Rose. In fact, I won’t watch any of the demonic
movies by myself. I even hate hearing
the creepy theme song of the Exorcist and Amityville.

1 Tell us the links for your website and any
social media you do?

Social media. FaceBook. My own blog is called “Journey of An Aspiring Writer”. I
also run the Virginia Chapter Blog “HWA Virginia Chapter”. I guess I should update those soon. J

1 Give the writers and horror writers out there
the one piece of advice you
can. It can be in two parts, one for writers/writers to be, and the second one for
readers of the genre.

One piece of advice I’d give horror
writers out there is to join the Horror Writers Association. The wealth of
knowledge is astonishing. For readers,
I’d highly recommend providing feedback to your favorite author by submitting your review viaGoodreadsor Amazon.

1 Where can anyone find you next—what book festival
or convention?

The
HWA Virginia Chapter will vend theScares That CareHorror Convention in Williamsburg, Virginia, from July
22-24, 2016.

One
of my favorite pictures: Me and the
legend of extreme horror, Edward Lee.

sol, meaning 'Sun' andsistere,
meaning 'to come to a stop or stand still'.Astronomers
and scientists use the date of the June Solstice to mark the beginning of
summer in the Northern Hemisphere and winter in the Southern Hemisphere. For
meteorologists on the other hand, summer began almost three weeks ago, on June
1. Even though most people consider June 21 as the date of the June Solstice,
it can happen anytime between June 20 and June 22. June 22 Solstices are rare -
the last June 22 Solstice in UTC time took place in1975and
there won't be another one until 2203. This is when the Sun is directly
overhead theTropic of Cancer. In
many Northern Hemisphere cultures, the day is traditionally considered to be
the mid-point of the summer season. Many European countries hold midsummer
celebrations. And though summer in the Northern Hemisphere, many believe that
the earth is closest to the sun during the June Solstice. Actually, the earth
is farthest from the sun at this time of the year. Our planet will be on itsApheliona few weeks after the June Solstice.

The Northern Hemisphere has
the longest day of the year in terms of daylight; the June Solstice is also
called the

Summer Solstice. In the Southern Hemisphere, it is the
shortest day of the year and is known as theWinter
Solstice. Solstices happen
twice a year - in June and December. The December onetakes place around December 21. On
this day, the Sun is precisely over the Tropic of Capricorn.

The sun reaches its northern-most
position, as seen from the Earth. At that moment, its zenith does not move
north or south as during most other days of the year, but stands still at the
Tropic of Cancer. It then reverses its direction, moving south again.

The opposite happens during
the December Solstice. The sun reaches its southern-most position in the sky -
the Tropic of Capricorn - stands still and then reverses its direction towards
the north.

June Solstice happens at
the same time all over the world, at the exact instant of time when the Sun is
directly overhead the Tropic of Cancer. In 2016, this will happen on June 20 at
22:35UTC.

Time zonesdifferences
will cause this event to take place on June 21 at locations that are more than
one and a half hours ahead of UTC. That includes all of Europe, Russia and
Asia.

The earliest sunrise doesn’t
happen on this day either. The earliest sunrise happens a few days before and
the latest sunset takes place a few days after the June Solstice.

In the Southern Hemisphere, where this day marks the Winter
Solstice, the earliest sunset happens a few days before the solstice, and the
latest sunrise occurs a few days after it. It is not even the hottest day of
the year, the hottest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere happens a few
weeks or sometimes months after the Solstice.

Monday, June 06, 2016

‪#‎AmWriting‬ Tomorrow. this new book that I wrote a letter for will be released. Proceeds go to the Wayne Foundation (The Wayne Foundation’s vision is for a world without child slavery. We are dedicated to providing direct assistance to those victimized by exploitation.) Pure Textuality PR is behind this publication: http://puretextualitypr.com So, if you are a writer, get this and not only are there inspiration for you the beginning writer (even the pro writer) from sixty authors, but you are helping a great charity! Right niw, just an eBook version, bu a print copy is coming.

BOOK SYNOPSISKnowing what you know now of writing, publishing, and putting your art out into the world, if you could go back to the day you sat down to start typing in your very first manuscript, what words would you offer to yourself? Words of encouragement? Words of advice? Caution against certain pitfalls? Would you change anything about how you got to where you are today?

The publishing community is so much bigger than it was before the self-publishing boom and it continues to grow exponentially every day. Unfortunately, it doesn’t come with a handbook or support group. The book is to provide words of encouragement or advice to those just starting out or those who have become discouraged in their art. At Pure Textuality PR, we believe in supporting each other as a community, and we felt this project would be a good way to bring writers together and maybe give some new artists just the right nudge to keep going.

100% of the net proceeds of #AmWriting will be donated to The Wayne Foundation, a charity dedicated to offering aid and services to young women victimized by illegal sexual exploitation and the sexual trafficking of minors.

THE WAYNE FOUNDATIONBoard of Directors | Financials | PodcastsLinksBoard of Directors http://waynefdn.org/about-twf/board-of-directorsFinancials http://waynefdn.org/about-twf/financialsPodcasts http://waynefdn.org/podcastsMission StatementThe Wayne Foundation is committed to spreading awareness of CSEC (Commercial Sex Exploitation of Children) DMST (Domestic Minor Sexual Trafficking) occurring within the United States.Vision StatementThe Wayne Foundation’s vision is for a world without child slavery. We are dedicated to providing direct assistance to those victimized by exploitation.Drop in CenterThe Wayne Foundation operates the third drop in center in Florida recognized by the Department of Children and Family Services. It is located in Charlotte County Florida, and serves clients throughout Southwest Florida. Our target clientele are young women aged 13-25. Our DIC is equipped to provide daily services that include, but are not limited to: Food, New Clothing, Access to Shower, Media Center, Mental Health Assistance, SNAP/ Medicare Benefit sign-up/renewal, Family Counseling, Education Assistance, and Transportation To and From the Center.Shelter ServicesThe Wayne Foundation continues to have the goal of providing shelter services to young women victimized by exploitation or trafficking. This is our primary long term objective.

Friday, June 03, 2016

The past couple of days, humidity
has hit Virginia. What has me thinking, do spirits or monsters feel the
humidity like we humans do?

I mean, spirits were once living
beings who passed away from our plain of existence. Supposedly, you no longer
need to eat, drink, or have any other mortal body functions. Do they still
feel, even if it's a sort of memory? I always asked that question during a paranormal
investigation when we the investigators are either sweating due to extreme heat
or freezing from the winter chill. I haven't gotten an answer to that question
yet.

What about Bigfoot or a lake
monster, or even the Mothman? Because he's called the Jersey Devil, does that
means if New Jersey's weather is in the 100s, he's fine, because we equate
devil with Hell? And Hell means hot--right? Maybe he is waiting for Hell to
freeze over.

I know that the Sasquatch has to
feel the heat, with all that fur/hair covering its body. As for the lake or sea
serpent, it can duck beneath the surface to keep cool--unless the water levels
start dropping. So the next time you decide to over-water your lawn this summer,
think about that poor lake monster who might die due to water levels lowering in
its environment.

I'm not even going to talk about aliens
or UFOs, even though I think the Mothman is an alien more than anything
paranormal. Like any tourist to somewhere else, they'll just have to do their
research on what sort of clothing they should pack in their suitcases!

Next time, you relax in your AC or
stay indoors in your heated house during the winter, think about all those
phantoms, monsters and extinct beasties that have to suffer the weather too.

About Me

Pamela K. Kinney is a published author of horror, science fiction, fantasy, poetry, and nonfiction ghost books published by Schiffer Publishing. Her latest fiction includes short horror stories, "Donating" in Inhuman Magazine, Issue 5 December 2011 and "Bottled Spirits" (a Predator and Editor 2012 winner and a 2013 WSFA Small Press Award runner up), “Azathoth is Here" reprinted by Innsmouth Press in Innsmouth Magazine: Collected Issues 1-4 in Kindle and ePub formats, short dark fantasy, “Devil in the Details,” included in Harboring Secrets anthology and short horror story, “Let Demon Dogs Lie” released in Southern Haunt: Devils in the Darkness anthology March 2014, and coming soon, a fantasy short story, “Weregoat” in Strangely Funny II anthology. And of course, she has her horror and dark fantasy tales collection in print and download, Spectre Nightmares and Visitations, published by Under the Moon.
She also has done acting on stage and in films, is a Master Costumer, costuming since 1972, and she even does paranormal investigating, including for DVDs for Paranormal World Seekers, filmed by AVA Productions.